The Nissan driver, back in the sport after a long break, proved too good for the 60-strong field, beating home Simon and Ian Ellis (Subaru Legacy) and Ross O’Reilly/Tim McGill in a Nissan Bluebird, for a top-of-podium finish.
Rally Bonnie Doon, hosted by the North Eastern Car Club under Clerk of Course, Scott Spedding, was the first round of the 2010 Victorian Clubman Rally Series.
The ever-popular rally attracted a potential field of 95 crews, just 60 of whom were eligible to start because of the field limitation.
Run in the hardwood forests of Strathbogie and Bonnie Doon, the 200km course produced some ideal rally roads designed to bring out the best in drivers, however these were interspersed with some recent rain-affected tracks which tended to level the playing field. As a result, 15 crews failed to finish the event, however there were no serious incidents.
While Friend and Smalley were never quickest on stage, they managed to be consistent enough to snare first place after a number of more highly fancied crews fell by the wayside.
Had the event been one stage longer, O’Reilly and Gill may well have inherited second place, finishing a mere two seconds in arrears of the Ellis team. Just four of the first 10 cars were 4WD’s.
Dry and slightly dusty conditions prevailed on the day, evening out the disparity between the 4WD turbo cars and the more powerful rear wheel drive machines.
Provisional Results:
1.   Alan Friend/Robin Smalley      Nissan Silvia    59m21s
2.   Simon Ellis/Ian Ellis         Subaru Legacy   59.37
3.   Ross O’Reilly/Tim McGill      Nissan Bluebird   59.39
4.   Nathan Berry/Dane Berry      Mitsubshi Lancer   60.46
5.   Daniel Fynch/Wayne Webb   Mazda 323GTX   61.27
6.   Simon Boyer/Simon Thompson   Datsun 1600      61.38
7.   Sean Hudgson/Darren Wythe   Datsun 1600      62.02
8.    Alan Wilson/Kevin Wilson      Subaru Impreza   62.20
9.   Rowan Woollard/Russell Woolard   Datsun Bluebird   62.30
10.   Mark Richards/Steph Richards   Ford Escort Mk2   62.37
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